Our New Life
by Lady of the Black Lake
Summary: Beginning on James' first birthday, this story will follow Harry, Ginny and all the other Harry Potter characters you've come to love as the next generation begins.
1. Chapter 1

The soft tinkling of bells could be heard throughout the small cottage-style home. It was accompanied with gentle music, designed to soothe and give comfort. If one were to follow the music from the lower level of the house and up the stairs, they would find themselves drawn to the very last room on their left. If a person continued to follow the music and opened the door, they would see a little raven-haired babe asleep in a crib with dim light lit. A handmade knitted blanket covered the infant up to his chest and the footie pyjamas he wore were embroidered with a hand-stitched letter 'J'. Both were maroon.

This was the sight Harry and Ginny saw every night when they headed up to bed. Having put James to sleep hours earlier, it always helped them rest easier when they were able to check in on him and see that their little boy slept so peacefully. James' eyelids flickered as his eyes moved beneath them, lost in dreams; his little plump lips slightly open and rosy cheeks made him the picture of innocence.

"He was so good today," Ginny mused in a whisper and a small smile on her face. "Not one tantrum or crying fit."

"Well, he's one now," Harry whispered back as he put his right arm around his wife's waist. "Much more grown up, don't you think?" At his little joke, his wife let out a light laugh and rested her head against his right shoulder. Her left arm encircled his waist and he felt her fingers trace his left side absentmindedly; his t-shirt moved at her touch.

"Ron shouldn't have bought him that toy wand. There's going to be little fires everywhere from the sparks it makes," Ginny said softly.

"Well, that's what _Aguamenti_ is for, right?" Harry said as he turned his head softly to kiss the top of Ginny's head. "No harm in a few fires."

"Let's see if you'll be saying that when you're the one that's going to be putting all of them out," Ginny teased. Harry chuckled.

"Oh, Mrs. Potter, who knew you could be so cruel? Come on, let's head to bed. James is fine for the night." Harry left Ginny's side to turn off the Muggle radio that played James' sleep music and turned off the dim lamp. He then took hold of Ginny's hand and led her from the room, making sure that they left the door open so James could be heard. They went down the hall and entered their own bedroom. Harry started to get ready for bed; his jeans were removed and switched out for flannel plaid pyjama bottoms, his t-shirt slipped over his head and put into the laundry bin.

Ginny moved to stand in front of him. She wore one of his old t-shirts, a grey one with a black collar. She reached up with a gentle touch and removed Harry's glasses from his face. She set them down onto his nightstand and looked up at him. "Thank you," she said as she placed her hands on his chest.

"For what?" Harry asked with a smirk.

"For just being you. And being such a good daddy to James. And a good husband to me." His wife's lips were then pressed against his and Harry moved his hands to lightly rest upon her waist.

They were woken up in the morning to the sound of James cooing in his crib. Harry yawned and then smiled, untangling himself from his wife. "I'll do changing and breakfast. You sleep, I'll call you down in a bit, ok?" he whispered in Ginny's ear. Her response was a sleepy smile and a light kiss before she fell back asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Harry slipped on his glasses and readjusted his pyjama bottoms as he got out of bed. He left the bedroom he shared with his wife and walked back down the hallway to James' room. As the door had remained open all night, Harry was instantly able to see his son from the doorway. James' eyes fixated on his father's face and upon recognition, he cooed and giggled happily.

"Dada!" he said with his little inflections and he attempted to stand up in his crib. He grabbed the rails in the crib with both hands and pulled himself up.

Harry walked forward and reached into the crib to lift his son up into his arms. "Good morning, son. How'd you sleep? How'd my big boy sleep?" He peppered a few quick kisses onto James' left cheek, which caused the infant to laugh. Harry loved waking up and being with his son. His black hair was unruly from sleep just like his father's, a trait that Harry was always proud they shared.

Potter carried his son over to his change table and helped James out of his footie pyjamas. "You didn't cry at all last night," Harry said with a grin; the pyjamas were put into a small laundry bin and then James' diaper was removed. Harry quickly grabbed some baby wipes from a little cabinet under the change table and ran them along James' bottom until his son was clean. He then slipped a fresh diaper on to his little boy.

"Do you want to help Daddy make breakfast this morning?" he asked as he put a little pair of trousers and a jumper onto James. His son giggled and nodded in response.

"Hungwy," James answered and he reached up for his father. Harry picked him back up and held him against his chest; the pair headed downstairs to the kitchen. Harry put James in his high chair and got some puffed oats from the cabinet to tide James over until he could cut up some fruit for his son. The little Potter child picked up the puffed oats from his high chair table in small little handfuls and clumsily put them into his mouth. Harry looked up and upon realizing the impending mess the rest of breakfast would make, he grabbed a bib and fastened it around James' neck.

"What should Daddy make for Mummy's breakfast?" Harry asked his son. "What do you think Mummy will like?"

"Eggies!" James cheered with his mouth full. "Eggies, eggies!"

"Eggs and sausage it is," Harry agreed with a small laugh and he turned around to flick the stove on; a frying pan was placed on a burner. He and Ginny lived with Muggle appliances but they didn't mind cooking either way; Harry used the stovetop the most. "Now let's see if we have any formula for you, son."

He grabbed some formula powder from another cabinet and put some in a bottle. He put the bottle in the microwave and started it up. As the formula heated, Harry fried up some eggs and put a heat spell on them to keep them warm until Ginny woke up. That left the sausage. He brought some water to boil in a pot and put a few sausages in the boiling water until they had cooked through. When that was done, he turned to his son.

"Do you want to see some magic, James?" he asked, his eyes sparked with mischief. James let out a cry of joy and clapped his little hands.

"Dada, magic!"

Harry held out his hand with his palm facing upwards. He had long-since learned how to do hand magic, something Hermione had already been great at whilst in Hogwarts. "Expecto Patronum!"

Silver, light and mystical mist began to float from Harry's hand and billow through the kitchen until it solidified and formed a silver stag. Harry's Patronus. The figment padded over to James' high chair and nuzzled the baby's cheek. James giggled even though he couldn't truthfully feel the Patronus' touch. The Patronus then turned to Harry as if it waited for something. Harry smiled.

"Wake up, darling. It's time for breakfast," he said. The Patronus blinked and then opened his muzzle. _Wake up, darling. It's time for breakfast._ It had recorded Harry's voice. The stag floated on air out of the kitchen and pranced up the stairs and into Harry and Ginny's bedroom. Within a few moments, Ginny came out with a robe on and descended the stairs. She entered the kitchen and went to James, who was reaching out to her already.

"Good morning, my beautiful boy!" she exclaimed as she lifted him out of his high chair. Her son's hands rested on her mouth and she momentarily kissed his palms.

"Mama!" James cooed with a smile. He put his hands on her shoulders and his brown eyes stared into a gaze that matched his own. "Dada eggies!"

"What? Daddy made me eggs for breakfast?" Ginny asked and she looked in between her husband and her son. "Well, what should I say to Daddy, James?"

"Tank oo," James said, focused hard on pronouncing the 't' in his version of the word 'thank.' Ginny nodded.

"You're right, baby, I should say thank you." She put her son back in his high chair and walked over to her husband. She put her hands on his shoulders and leaned up to press her lips to his. "Thank you for my eggs, handsome."

"No problem, gorgeous," Harry replied with a smirk. He affectionately ran his thumb along her lower lip for a moment and then pulled away. "I also made you some sausages so eat up." He kissed the top of her head before he headed over to the fridge and grabbed a few apples and pears. As Ginny ate, he cut the fruit and gave a few slices to his son as well as the bottle full of formula. He then went upstairs and put on his work robes. It was, sadly, a Monday morning and he had to return to work at the Ministry as an Auror.

"I'm off, sweetheart," Harry called from the front door when he had once more descended the stairs; Ginny came out of the kitchen with James in her arms. "I'll be home for lunch and I might bring Ron, ok?"

"Alright, love. Don't stress yourself out too much," Ginny said before placing a kiss on her husband's cheek. Harry then kissed the top of his son's head.

"Be good for Mummy, young man, do you hear me?" Harry teased. James grinned as if he understood what his father was saying.

"Dada, bye bye!" the infant said with a clumsy wave of his little hand. Harry chuckled.

"Bye, son. Daddy loves you."

"Love oo," James repeated before he snuggled up in the crook of his mother's neck. Harry gave one more kiss to his wife and then headed out the front door. He walked through the front garden and turned on the sidewalk, headed for the corner of the street. He waited until no one was out on his street and then disapparated at the corner.

When he apparated, Harry was inside the Ministry of Magic. He quickly took one of the elevators up to the Aurors' Offices and sat down at his cubicle to look through case files that had been placed on his desk. When he looked up again a few minutes later, it was when his best friend Ron sat down beside him in the adjoining cubicle. "Morning, mate."

"Morning. 'Mione says hello," Ron said with a grin as he looked at a few case files of his own.

"As if we just didn't just see everyone last night," Harry joked. "James loved that wand, he played with it the rest of the night. Sparks went everywhere. Ginny complained of course, but she secretly loves the gift, I know it."

Ron chuckled. "Good, I'm glad. I wanted to get him a few sweets from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes but I didn't want to pick the joke ones by mistake and make him sick."

"Good call," Harry agreed. "Because if my son was being violently sick and you were responsible, I think I can speak for both Ginny and I when I say that you'd be cleaning it up."

Ron shuddered. "I'm not dealing with that until I have my own kids."

Harry laughed. "You and Hermione have plans for that yet?"

"Well it's not like we haven't been trying. We just can't," Ron said with a sigh.

"It'll happen," Harry said with a small smile. "I mean, it took Ginny and I a year…" Ron cut him off.

"Yeah, Harry, y'know that I love you, mate but I still don't like thinking of you and my sister shagging," Ron said which was followed by the comment, "Even if it made my beautiful nephew."

Harry laughed again.

"Just saying that it takes time, that's all."

"Yeah, yeah. Just read through the files, you numpty," Ron said with good humour. Harry rolled his eyes and went back to his work, immersed for the next few hours. When it came time for lunch, Harry looked up at his friend.

"Do you want to come over for lunch?" he asked. Ron shrugged his shoulders and got up from his desk. The two joined hands and disapparated; they apparated on Harry's front step and he opened the front door.

"Ginny, I'm home! I have Ron with me," he called as they entered.

"I'm giving James a bath, Harry, darling! Can you make Ron comfortable?" Ginny called down from upstairs. Splashing and giggles followed her words, which usually meant James was having more fun in the bath than actual bath time.

Harry led Ron into the kitchen and started making a fettuccine alfredo for lunch using magic. When Ginny and James came downstairs a few minutes later, James wore nothing but an animal bathrobe that had a lion mane around it. Ginny put him down on the kitchen floor and he ran over to Ron. "Up! Up!" Ron picked up his nephew and held him close.

"You are very scary lion, James," Ron said, kissing the top of his nephew's head. "Do you like your wand?" James nodded and kissed the tip of Ron's freckled nose.

"Tank oo."

"No problem, champ. Glad you like it." Ron put James down in his high chair.

"Mimi?" the little Potter asked. Mimi was what he called Hermione since he couldn't pronounce Hermione or 'Mione.

"Auntie Mimi is at work, James," Ginny replied as she ruffled her son's hair. He frowned up at her.

"No touch, Mama."

Harry chuckled at his son's antics. "He likes his hair messy."

"I wonder where he gets that from," Ginny said, sarcastic. The three adults laughed quietly. The pasta being done, Harry served it onto plates for the three of them and cut up a very small serving for James to try, putting the noodles on the tray of the high chair. The adults then ate, talked about James' birthday party the night before and set up a date where Ron, Hermione, Harry and Ginny could go out on a double date. Molly Weasley, Ginny's mother, would surely love to babysit James. She couldn't get enough time with her grandchildren and had practically held James in her arms all of last night.

When the lunch break was over, Harry kissed Ginny quickly and hugged his son before he headed with Ron back to the front door. They went out onto the front step and disapparated back to work. When they returned to the Ministry and Harry and Ron went back to their desks, the rest of their day was filled with work. They were assigned to go and deal with a case in Diagon Alley the next day, which was sure to provide some challenges.

But as of right now, Harry and Ron only wanted to go home and have dinner with their wives.


End file.
